Knitting-machine needle



P. P. LA MONTAGNE.

KNITTING MACHINE NEEDLE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 22.'I918.

1,435,715, Patented Nov. 14, 1922.

InvenI-or. amok mfilwmf Qy Jmd SWIM FIIIBS.

Patented Nov. 14, 1922.

PAT

ENT OFFICE.

' PATRICK P. LA MONTAGNE, OF BOURBONNAIS, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO POPE MACHINE COMPANY, OF KANKAKEE, ILLINOIS, A

CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

KNITTING-MACHINE NEEDLE.

Application filed November 22, 1918.

- member and latch member are separate members, that is, physically independent and separate from each other although co-acting to perform the required knitting functions. V

In my application No. 362,878, filed March 2,1920, as a continuation of my prior applications, Nos. 251,806 and 251,807 filed August 28, 1918, the latter of which has been abandoned, there is disclosed a broad principle, which is therein illustrated as particularly adapted to a cylinder needle of a knitting machine, for preventing any unnecessary or deleterious expansion of the stitches during the retracting movements of the neo- In order that the stitch may be cast of? from the knitting machine needle it is inherent in the operation of the needle that this stitch must be expanded suiiiciently to slide off over the point of the latch when closed over the tip of the hook. When a stitch is thus being cast off other stitches on adjacent needles occupy varying positions along the needles. The degree of expansion of all these stitches must be reduced to a minimum necessary to the operation of the needle or a. dangerous amount of strain will be placed upon the stitches and rupture or cutting will result. In the broad feature of invention madethe subject of the foregoing applications only such an amount of expansion is placed upon these needles as is necessary to secure the proper casting ofl' oi? the stitches during the. retracting movement or the needle.

The object of the present invention is to adapt tl is broad principle to the dial needle of the knitting machine and thus to eliminate the same difiiculty in connection with the dial needle. Inthe dial needles the same danger of swelling the stitches during Serial No. 268,726.

the retracting movement to a greater degree than s actually required for casting off exists and consequently undue strain and breakage of the stitches are likely to take place. This is particularly so in the operation of tucking where the dial needles in large number stand partially projected and would thushold a large number of stitches swelled over the needles at a. point about at the check. 1

The present invention is adaptable to various types otseparat-e latch needles but is disclosed for convenience in connection with j a needle of the type illustrated in my prior appication No. 205,981 filed December 7 191 The present invention provides the hook member of the needle at its inner edge opposite the cheek with a re-entrant portion so that the total cross sectional area of the members forming the needle between that point where the stitch rests upon the needle when the needle is in projected position and that point where the stitch rests when the latch has just closed upon the hook preparatory to casting off is substantially constant so that the stitch in moving between these points is not subjected to any expanding strain and so that there is no expansion of the stitch other than that essentially required in casting the stitch ofi' over the end of the needle.

Tiese and other objects and features of the invention will appear more fully from the accompanying description and drawings and will be particularly pointed out in the claims. n

The drawings represent so much of a knitting machine as is necessary to a disclosure of the invention.

In the drawings,

Figure 1 is a central vertical cross see- 'tion of a portion of the dial of an ordinary type of knitting machine'with the preferred Fig. 4 is a plan view of a section of the construction shown in Fig. 1 with the cams and parts above the needle removed.

The needle as in the case of the prior ap plication No. 205,981 filed December 7, 1917, is composed of two members, a hook member moving in a slot formed in the needle bed and a separate latch member extending through a slot in the hook member and'hav ing a movement relative to the hook member to bring the point ofthe latch into and out of co-operation with the hook, and wherein the latch member projects into and movesin' a second 'slot formed in the needle bed beneath the slot for the hook member. In thistype of needle movement is imparted to one of the members, preferably the hook member, by a cam such as the usual cam employed for operating knitting machine needles and a retarding friction is applied to the other member, such as the latch member, preferably by causing it to bind slightly in its slot.

The present invention is particularly concerned with the form" of needles used in the dial of a knitting machine wherein theproblems arising from the limitations of space and of restriction of movement are peculia-rly difficult. i

In the construction illustrated only a small portion of a knitting machine sufficient to a disclosure of the invention is disclosed. The bed 1 of the dial supported on the vertical stud or shaft 2 is shown as provided with narrow radial slots 8 to receive the latch members and wider superimposed slots 1 to receivethe hook members of the needle.

The usual cam 5 is shown with its cam slot or roove for operatii'ig the butts of the hoo' -member's to give the necessary move ments thereto. 3

In the form'of needle illustrated the hook member is thus positively moved in and out or back and forth by the cam 5 and the latch member receives its movement from the hook member. A retarding action is given to the latch member by any suitable means and for that. purpose the means disclosed in the Pope and Randall Patent No.

1,241,882 gran-ted October 2, 1917 and more particularly shown in Fig; 8 of the said patent is illustrated. This comprises a flat thin leaf spring 6 located in the slot 3 alongside of the shank of the latch member and provided with a lateral bend by which it serves to press the shank of the latch member into engagement with the walls of the slot 8. p A projection '7 at the inner or rear end of this leaf spring enters a circumferentia'l groove in a cap 8 mounted on the stud 2 and serves to hold the springs in position. But it is obvious that any suitable means may be employed to give the necessary retarding action to the latch member.

The drawings in which the needle memerably formed by a saw out which passes entirely through the hook member trans versely and forms a recess 1% in that portion of the hook member forming thecheek 15. The bottom or inner surface of this recess 14 is inclined outwardly toward the hook tip and presents a straight extended bearing surface along which the latch member slides during its movement with respect to the" hook member.

The latch member which is preferably formed from thin sheet metal comprises the point 16 presenting the extended straight bearing surface 17 to co-operate with the bottom of the recess 14 of the hook member;

The latch member at theopposite end pre sents the tailor shank 18 which rides in the groove The needle members are preferably formed by a stamping or punching operation and in the preferred form present co-oper'ating shoulders by which the movements of the one member from the otherand relatively to each other are secured. Thus the shoulders 19 and 20 of the latch member co-operate respectively with the shoulders 21 and of the hook member.

lt' will be observed that a lateral opening extends entirely through the hook member and lies between the shoulder 22 and the forward transversely slotted portion of the hook member. The latch member, as seen in Fig 1', is much thinner than the hook member and its forward end moves in the recess 14- and transverse slot 12 which com municates with the lateral opening. Consequently the needleis self cleaning which is amost important feature in a knitting machine. Any dirt, dust or lint which may accumulate in the recess 14 and slot 12 is forced, by the relative movement of the needle members, out above the needle or back into the lateral opening. But it cannot accumulate and pack up in the lateral opening because the comparatively narrow shoulders 19 and 20 of the thin latch member cut through it and it is crowded out ateach side from the lateral opening into the needle slot. It is very important that dirt, dust and lint shall not continue to accumulate between the members of the i'ieedle because it will "prevent the proper operation of the needle. r V

The position of the needle members when the needle is in projected or yarn receiving position is shown in Fig. 3. The needle has been brought to this position by the action of the cam 5 on the butt 9 of the hook member moving the hook member outwardly until the shoulder 22 has caught the shoulder 20 of the latch member when the members move together. When the needle is in its projected or yarn receiving position the last stitch. taken by the needle surrounds the needle members and rests at a point well in the rear of the check 15 and about in line with the shoulder 21. Then the retracting movement of the needle takes place the hook member retracts alone, and the latch member remains stationary, until the shoulder 19 of the latch member contacts with the shoulder 21 of the hook member and the latch point 16 rests in the notch 13 of the hook tip at which time the latch is closed over the hook and the needle members are in position for casting off. During this portion of the retracting movement of the needle the stitch on the needle slides along over the needle from the point where it rested when the needle was in projected position to a point at the base of the latch point when the latch is closed over the hook.

During this portion of the retracting movement of the needle it is highly important that no expanding strain should be placed upon the sliding stitch. During the continued retracting movement of the needle expansion of the stitch necessarily takes place as the stitch is cast off over the latch closed over the hook. In the knitting operation a series of needles stand in varying degrees of projection or retraction at the knitting point and the stitches consequently occupy varying positions on the series of needles. Again in the tucking operation a series of needles stand partially projected with the stitches thereon. In either case if the cross section of the needle is such as to expand the stitch prior to the beginning of the necessary casting off action the strain on the yarn becomes considerable because it is multiplied by the number of needles standing partially projected.

In the present invention the hook member is formed with a re-entrant portion 23 at its inner edge opposite the recess is and the check 15 and this re-entrant portion is of such a size and shape as to cause the total cross-sectional area of the hook and latch members over which the stitch slides during that portion of the retracting movement of the needle required to close the latch point over the hook tip to remain substantially constant so that no expanding strain is placed upon the stitch during this portion of the movement of the needle. The

re-entrant curve 23 reaches its greatest reentrant position about opposite the check 15 and while this curve does not, and desirably should not, conform exactly to the outline of the check of the hook member it is evident that the two approximate each other closely so that for all practical purposes the total cross sectional area of the hook and latch members over which the stitch slides during the portion of the retracting movement of the needle required to close the latch point over the hook tip is substantially constant.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A separate latch knitting machine needle comprising separate hook and latch members, the said hook member being provided with a slot extending longitudinally thereof and transversely therethrough and terminating in a recess in the outer face of the hook member with its bottom or inner surface inclined outwardly toward the hook tip, the said latch member movable in "said slot with its point in said recess longitudinally and transversely relatively to the hook member, the inner edge of the hook member opposite said recess being re-entrant to an extent sufiicient to render substantially constant the total cross sectional area of the hook and latch members over which the stitch slides during that portion of the retracting movement of the needle required to close the latch point over the hook tip.

2. A separate latch knitting machine needle comprising hook and latch members, the said hook member being provided with a slot extending longitudinally thereof and transversely therethrough, a recess in the outer face of the forward portion of the hook member, a lateral opening extending through the hook member, the said slot lying between and terminating at one end in the recess and at the other end in the opening, the said latch member being thinner than the needle member and movable in said recess, slot and opening longitudinally and transversely relatively to the hook member, and shoulders on the latch member operating in the opening, the said shoulders co-opcrating with the hook member to effect the relative longitudinal movements of the needle members and acting to cut through and force out laterally from the opening of the hook member dust, dirt or lint accumulating therein whereby the needle is self cleaning.

in testimony whereof, I have signed my i name to this specification. V

l? ATRICK P. LA MONlAt-iltlt. 

